Moments in Time
by jamespotteriloveyou
Summary: This is a collection of one-shots based on one word prompts. 30 word prompts, 30 Harry Potter characters, 30 moments in time in the lives of Harry Potter and his friends and family. The rating is for later as I don't know what I'm going to write 29 days from now.
1. Beginning

**A/N: Hullo everyone :) I decided to do a 'word a day' writing challenge. I'm going to do my best to actually write every day and get them posted as well. So, here's the first one!**

** Oh yeah, and I'm not JK Rowling and I don't own Harry Potter.**

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_Beginning_

Rose looked up at the castle. The weather was mild and the wind was carrying the sound of her schoolmates' laughter up through the grounds. Exams were long gone, the farewell feast was over, the trunks were packed and the carriages were waiting to take the students to Hogsmeade station where the train would take them home.

She glanced at the group of students relaxing by the edge of the lake and smiled shortly. Scorpius and Al were trying to push Lily into the water, Lucy and Roxanne were talking animatedly to each other, and Hugo was standing behind the big beech tree snogging the living daylights out of Alice because he thought no one could see.

Rose turned back to the castle and examined its towers and it's turrets and its weathered exterior. Hogwarts had become a second home to her and it felt impossible that she wouldn't be returning. Everything she had known for the majority of her life was ending- her education, her stability, her childhood. She wasn't ready to grow up. She wanted to go back to being that wide-eyed eleven year old girl who believed in everything and depended on her parents to make her decisions- she missed having other people being in control.

She had an internship set up at St. Mungo's for the summer that would allow her to enter the Healer training program in September. Her parents were encouraging her to find a flat in London near the hospital so that she could be close to work and learn responsibility. Scorpius wouldn't stop talking about the future. And all she wanted to do was be a child again.

"Hey Rosie, what're you doing up here? It's time to go." Al threw his arm around his cousin's shoulders and Scorpius grabbed her hand on her other side.

"Just remembering. It's all over, guys. This is it. It's ending."

Scorpius kissed her cheek and Al chuckled. "Yeah, but that just means that something new is beginning."

"Exactly. On to the next great adventure. Scorpius Malfoy, Rose Weasley, and Albus Potter- adults. It's got a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Rose shook her head and giggled. "You two are far from being adults." She sighed. "I just- I don't want it to end."

Al ruffled her hair and smiled. "Aww don't think of it like that. It's just another beginning, that's all. And who says we have to grow up right away- we can be adults without growing up, right? Our parents still act like children sometimes and they're old."

"I thought I was supposed to be the smart one in this friendship." Rose said poking her cousin in the side.

"Oi! I resent that- I'm smart too!" Scorpius said loudly. Rose threw her arms around both of them and they made their way to the carriages waiting outside the gates.

"Me and my boys, adults in the real world." She kissed them both on their cheeks and then climbed into an empty carriage.

"We aren't her boys." she heard Al say indignantly.

There was silence for a moment and then Al spoke again. "We are her boys, aren't we?"

"We are so her boys."

Rose smiled as they climbed into the carriage with her. She still didn't want her childhood to end. She was still scared half to death about her future. But she realized that something new was starting. A great new adventure was beginning that very moment.

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**There you are! 1 down, 29 to go! And btw, they won't all be the same character or the same generation for that matter. I'm going to try and do each day a different character. **

**Did you catch the Doctor Who reference in there? I don't know if that's word for word from the show or not but if it is, obviously I didn't make it up. I just thought it fit nicely in there :)  
**

**So please review and let me know what you think and I'll see y'all tomorrow!**


	2. Accusation

**A/N: Hey y'all! Back for day two! I hope you enjoyed yesterdays. I just finished reading a Tedromeda fic so I decided to write today's about Andromeda.**

**Still not Jo, still don't own Harry Potter, still wish I was/did.**

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_Accusation_

The accusation had flown from her sister's mouth so quickly that she wasn't sure if she was hearing her right. How could she possibly know? When had she found out? And what was she going to do about it? Surely she would tell their mother and father as soon as possible.

Andromeda settled herself in the grass of the small London play park and looked at the still surface of the pond in front of her. She had always been good at keeping her feelings from showing. She should have been more careful. She wanted to yell at Bellatrix that she was wrong so badly- that she was nutters, out of her mind!

But sadly, in this case, her older sister was absolutely right.

She was Andromeda Black, daughter of Cygnus and Druella Black, sister of Bellatrix and Narcissa Black, descendent of the 'Ancient and Most Noble House of Black'. And she was in love with a Muggleborn.

She had tried to stay away from Ted Tonks. She had tried not to look at him over her cauldron in Potions class. She had tried not to laugh when he said something absolutely goofy. She tried not to sneak away to meet him. She tried as hard as she could not to kiss him. She had tried so hard not to fall in love with him. But she failed miserably.

And what was worse was the fact that she didn't care- not in the least.

Andromeda realized, as the water in front of her rippled and a cold wind blew around her, that she didn't much care about the accusation itself. What mattered was the look in Bella's eyes when she had made it. It was an almost crazy triumph- as if she had been hoping to catch Andromeda betraying her family. Andromeda didn't care much what Bellatrix thought, or what their parents thought for that matter. But Narcissa- she mattered. The two of them had always been close. Bellatrix had always been in her own world- her own mad world- and Andromeda and Narcissa had always had each other. But would her sister be able to see through the dark veil surrounding their family and its beliefs?

As Ted came to sit beside her she smiled. Of course her sister's accusation had been meant to show Andromeda just what Bellatrix thought of her relationship. It was an accusation of disobedience and betrayal and dishonor. And while Bella might see her love for Ted as wrong, Andromeda knew that it was absolutely right, so the disobedience and betrayal and dishonor meant little to her.

Ted took her hand in his and kissed it.

"We'll be all right, 'Dromeda."

She turned and looked intently into his eyes. Despite the impending explosion that was sure to shake her and her family, she couldn't help being happy as she sat there beside him. She smiled and squeezed his hand.

"I know we will."

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**There you go! This is the first time I've written Andromeda. I kind of like this one, so please let me know what you think! See you tomorrow!**


	3. Silver

**A/N: Day 3. Here we go. Again, not JK Rowling, don't own Harry Potter.**

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_Silver_

Hermione huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. This was ridiculous. The room around her was full of silver. Ginny's horse was cantering through the air, Cho's swan was gliding around the room gracefully, Ernie's boar was charging across the floor. Even Seamus' Patronus was beginning to take the shape of something with four legs and it was his first meeting! But all Hermione could produce was a small, silvery wisp.

At the moment, she was pretty sure silver was her least favorite color.

"Excellent, Ron!" He turned to see Harry beaming at Ron and the silver terrier dog gamboling around their feet.

Hermione gritted her teeth and pushed the sleeves of her jumper up to her elbows- she was going to get this spell by the end of the night. A happy memory shouldn't be so hard to think of. Finding out she was witch had been one of the happiest days of her life- so why wasn't it working?

"You can do it, Hermione. Try thinking of something else. Find something that makes you so happy it makes you feel warm inside." Harry patted her arm and then stood back to watch her. Maybe the Yule Ball! No, that wouldn't work- that night didn't exactly end well. How well everyone was taking Harry's interview in the Quibbler? No, because although it was great that people were starting to believe him, it meant that the fight with Voldemort was getting nearer.

She looked up and found Ron standing at Harry's side. They were laughing together at something.

"You two had better not be laughing at _me_," she said hotly. This only made them laugh harder. Ron shook his head, grabbed her by the arms and spun her around. She laughed too.

Fred's silver monkey was chasing Zacharias Smith around the room and the majority of the DA had stopped to watch and laugh. Hermione turned back to Harry and Ron, still laughing, and shook her head. It felt good to laugh like that. Real laughs were few and far between those days and it felt good to forget about everything and just laugh with her friends.

And then it hit her. Her friends- that was it. That was the memory she needed. She straightened out her body and held out her wand. The image of the three of them laughing together through the years flowed through her head. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes, a focused look on her face.

"Expecto Patronum!"

A burst of silver shot out of the tip of her wand and a shape started dancing around Harry, Ron, and herself. Harry and Ron beamed at her as she admired the small otter floating in the air before them.

"Nice one, Hermione." Ron said patting her shoulder as he and Harry moved away to go stand with Fred and George. Hermione admired the silvery otter as it swam through the air around her.

She smiled. Silver really was a pretty good color after all.

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**There you go. I love Hermione so I enjoyed writing this one a lot. I really hope you're enjoying this and please review!**


	4. Look

__**Here we go! Day four! And it's my bbys so I enjoyed writing it :P**

**Sadly, I don't own my bbys or their son or anything relating to them in any way. That would be JK Rowling's thing.**

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_Look_

She was giving him that look again. James Potter wasn't normally one to fidget, but that look she was giving him was making him squirm in his seat. She had been giving him the same look for the past week and a half since they returned to school and it was making him self-conscious. And James Potter did not get self-conscious.

He needed to confront her about it. It was driving him mad feeling her glaring at him in classes or in the common room or at meal times or during their meetings with the prefects. It really shouldn't have been that hard for him to talk to her about it- they were friends after all. They had spent the majority of their sixth year getting to know one another and realizing that they actually had quite a lot in common. So why was she looking at him like she wanted to punch him?

For some reason that look made him feel like if he did or said something wrong she might hex him. It made him feel like she saw him as the arrogant arse he had been two years ago. She spoke to him, but only when it was necessary or when he spoke to her first and every time he said her name the look disappeared from her face momentarily and was replaced by a look that James could only describe as hopeful. Then he would ask her a question or comment on her conversation and her face would rearrange itself back into the sour glare.

Finally, one night when they had patrols and Lily was steadily avoiding talking to him, he asked her what was wrong.

"What are you talking about, Potter? I'm perfectly fine." Her tone was clipped and her face was getting red.

"You're not a very good liar, Lily. And why are you calling me 'Potter' again?"

He could feel a fight coming. Her eyes were practically sparking like fireworks and she was trying to make herself taller in order to tower over him.

"I'm not lying, _Potter_. I'm fine. Swell, great, dandy. I'm fucking peachy!" She threw her hands up and stomped away.

James stood dumbstruck for a moment before running after her.

"Lily! Blimey, just tell me what's wrong! I can't figure out what to say if you don't tell me what's wrong."

She turned around and James was surprised that gone was the fierce look that she wore preceding a fight and in it's place was one that looked hopeless and defeated. James' stomach plummeted at the sight of the tears gathering in her eyes.

"Lily, I-"

"No! Just stop. Stop trying to figure out what's wrong with me!"

"But Lily-" He could see her trying not to let the tears spill over. She stomped her foot and made a noise that James could only take as a sign of her exasperation.

"You're what's wrong with me, okay?"

James was completely lost now. What on Earth had he done to make her so upset?

"You make me let you in. You tell me that we'll be friends and that I'll see that you aren't just a total arse and I agreed because really, what could go wrong? And then you stop asking me to Hogsmeade and it makes me realize that I want you to ask me to Hogsmeade which makes me realize that I fancy the pants off of you!"

She was yelling at him now and the look on her face and the bite in her voice told him that she was furious with herself for saying this out loud and furious with him for _making_ her say it out loud.

"You make me fancy you and then you go and snog Carrie Walters." Her voice was quiet now and she was looking at the floor.

"Lily, I'm sorry. I-"

"No, don't apologize- you're just making me feel pathetic! Though I probably am pathetic going on like this. It's not your fault that I suddenly developed feelings for you when you finally got over me. I jus-"

He decided that he was tired of seeing the angry look and the dejected look and the hopeless look so he silenced her quite effectively- with his mouth. She squeaked in surprise before letting her body relax and responding with enthusiasm.  
When they finally untangled themselves Lily looked up at him and blushed.

"So Evans, d'you wanna go to Hogsmeade with me?"

She slapped his arm and buried her face in her hands, muffling laughter and shaking her head. When she removed her hands she was beaming and her eyes were crinkled in the corners from her large smile. He liked this look much better.

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**There you go! I actually wrote most of that in my government class today. Oops :P Please let me know what you think!**


	5. Snowflake

**Hey y'all! It's kind of short today, but nevertheless, here it is.**

**I'm still not JK Rowling. It's not me that those people are buying tickets to meet in New York and I don't own Harry Potter or any of Jo's other brilliant ideas.**

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_Snowflake_

"Teddy, what are you doing out here with no coat? You'll freeze!"

Teddy knew that voice. He had grown up with her, of course he knew her voice. The problem was that he was trying not to think about her or her voice. But he turned around anyway and found her smiling up at him, holding out a scarf and a pair of gloves.

"Thanks, Vic." He wrapped the scarf around his neck and stuffed his hands into the gloves and turned back to watch the children playing in the snow. She was right, he was absolutely freezing, but she had been laughing in the kitchen of Shell Cottage with her mother and Ginny and it was driving him mad. He loved her laugh- it was strangely loud and obnoxious for someone so dainty and it never failed to make him feel happy.

He looked back over at her and couldn't help but smile. Her hair was blowing in her face and her cheeks were rosy from the cold and the blue of her coat made the blue of her eyes ten times brighter. He watched as a snowflake fell on the tip of her nose and she giggled and found that he was having a hard time keeping himself from just grabbing her and kissing her then and there.

But he couldn't do that. Even though he felt that damn swarm of butterflies in his stomach again. Even though at that moment he was sure that this wasn't just some ordinary teenage crush. Even though he was coming to realize that he was in love with his best friend. He couldn't kiss her because she was Victoire and he was Teddy and they were best friends. And best friends didn't just kiss each other.

So he stowed the image of Victoire laughing as the snowflake melted on her nose in his mind and plastered a smile on his face and threw a huge snowball at her.

"Teddy Lupin, I'm gonna get you for that!" He ran away from her, laughing, out into the yard. As she chased after him, trying again and again to pelt him with snowballs, he realized that he would just have to hide his feelings because he wasn't about to lose this friendship.

The funny thing is, Victoire would have gladly kissed him in that moment when the snowflake had hit her nose because she was falling in love with her best friend too.

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**There it is. Thank you to those who have reviewed this- I seriously love you guys. And to everyone who has read it, I love you guys too! **


	6. Companion

**Hey guise. I'm kind of still having major Glee feels right now and this probably isn't as good as it could be. But I'm posting it anyway because it's almost tomorrow.**

**I'm still not JK Rowling and I don't own Harry Potter. I just fangirl obsessively over her characters.  
**

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Lily Potter sighed as she rolled over onto her back. She stared at the blue ceiling of her bedroom and tried to convince herself to get out of bed. It was a bright, sunny day outside- she could smell the fresh air coming in through her open window- and she could hear her brothers already splashing around in the pool in the backyard. She didn't feel much like swimming today, though.

It seemed like everything was changing. James was engaged now and Al was immersed in training for the Quidditch scouts that were sure to be at all his games come September when he would start his seventh year. Alice and Hugo seemed to be spending all their time together and Rose had started a summer internship at the Ministry that would help her chances of getting a job there after graduation.

She made a noise in the back of her throat to express her annoyance with the world to her empty room and pulled her pillow onto her face.

'Meow.'

She peeked out from under her pillow and saw her white cat, Minxy slinking into the room. The gorgeous animal jumped up onto the bed and crawled onto Lily's chest, kneading at her shirt with her claws before she lay down. Lily smiled and scratched the cat behind her ears. Minxy started purring and Lily let her head fall back onto her pillow as she continued to mindlessly pet her companion.

She had gotten Minxy when she was 9 years old. She had begged her parents for a cat for months and she just about died when they finally gave in and took her to the Magical Menagerie after dropping James and Al off at the train station. It hadn't taken her long to fall in love with the small white kitten and she cuddled her the whole way home.

Minxy had soon taken to following Lily around everywhere. Lily went to have a bath, Minxy curled up on the pile of clothes Lily left on the floor. Lily curled up on the couch to watch a film, Minxy jumped up onto her lap and nudged her hand until Lily scratched her head. Lily went to sleep, Minxy snuggled herself into the crook of Lily's knees. Her mum even said that sometimes Minxy would sit and wait by the door for Lily to come home from primary school.

She knows it sounds like the stupidest thing but that cat is her best friend. When both her brothers- and all her cousins for that matter- were off at Hogwarts, Minxy was there to cuddle and watch films and comfort her. And then when she finally got to go to school, Minxy was there to comfort Lily after a bad day or a particularly difficult lesson.

Lily realized, as she continued to pet Minxy, who was purring like a motor, that her cat was the perfect companion.

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**There you go. I would love reviews! Reviews are like Klaine kisses!**


	7. Move

**It's almost tomorrow again, but it was a busy day. I've decided that I really love the Tonks family. Like, Andromeda and Ted have one of the best and most tragic relationships. Just- they just give me so many feels. Ok, anyway, fangirling aside here's day 7! Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: I'm not JK Rowling and I don't own Harry Potter. I'm not even British. I just like to pretend I am and speak like I am.**

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_Move_

He had to move. He had to pack and say goodbye and leave.

Ted Tonks pulled a baseball cap on his head and turned to find his wife standing in the doorway.

That's why he was leaving- he had to leave for her safety. For Andromeda and Dora and his unborn grandchild. They would be safer without him. Andromeda may be a blood-traitor but she was still a Pureblood and would undoubtedly be safer if he were gone. If the Death Eaters came knocking they would be more likely to leave his girls alone if he was just gone.

"Please don't go." His heart broke at the sound of her voice thick with tears. His resolve almost broke as she hurried into his arms and dissolved into tears.

"I have to go, 'Dromeda. You and Dora will be safer without me."

"I can't lose you, Ted."

He grabbed hold of her arms and looked into her eyes.

"You won't."

"Ted you don't know that! You could-"

"'Dromeda, I know what could happen. But i can't just sit around and wait for them to find me. I'm not registered."

She just stared at him, her eyes and cheeks still wet. He sighed and shook his head.

"I have to go. You know I don't want to but you know I have to." He pulled her close and kissed her hair. "Besides, you aren't gonna lose me. I'm not done loving you yet. You're not going to get rid of me so easily."

He smiled when he heard her muffled laugh.

"I'll go wake Dora. She won't forgive either of us if you leave without saying goodbye."

She started to walk away, sniffling and wiping her still-crying eyes, but Ted pulled her back and kissed her soundly. When he finally pulled away she gave him a watery smile before she left.

As she disappeared out the door his smiled slid off his face and he wanted nothing more than to curl up with his wife and watch a movie or to sit at the kitchen table with Dora and a pot of tea and listen to her talk about work and the Order.

But he couldn't do that. He couldn't stay. He had to leave, had to move. And he would keep moving until it was safe for him to come back to his girls.

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**Ta-da! What'd you guys think? I hope you liked it! Please review! And a big big you're-awesome thanks to the people who have reviewed/followed/favorited this. You guys are amazing!**


	8. Restless

__**Hello all! First I want to thank everyone who reviewed and favorited and followed this last night! I appreciate it so much! So now, onto today's challenge!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, still not JK Rowling. I don't have a book coming out at the end of the month. I'm not even British.**

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_Restless_

Alice Longbottom was restless. She was still scared a little too, but it was hard to be scared with so many protective enchantments and a Fidelius charm surrounding the house so mostly she was restless. It was the end of October which meant that she and Frank and Neville hadn't left the house in almost four months.

She could tell that Frank was going a bit stir-crazy as well. He had taken to pacing the floor and looking out the window with this longing expression that made Alice anxious. She knew that there were some days when he was close to just running out the front door just so he could get out of the small, backyard-less house.

Alice hadn't talked to Lily in months- the Fidelius charms on both houses made it impossible for even owls to deliver letters from one girl to the other- and she missed Order meetings. The members of the Order of the Phoenix had become Alice's family and it was quite difficult not being able to talk to or see any of them.

Of course, little Neville didn't know anything was out of the ordinary. He played with his toys and listened with wide eyes as Frank read him stories from Beedle the Bard and laughed when Alice made bubbles blossom from her wand. He really was the perfect little boy.

Frank wrote Augusta every week without fail, though she could never respond. Alice thought that it made Frank feel more connected with the outside world. They couldn't get the Prophet anymore so they really had no clue what was going on in the outside world. Since Frank was their Secret Keeper, they didn't even have anyone to visit them. He had done this to be cautious, his Auror training with Mad-Eye no doubt the cause, but Alice couldn't help but wonder if James and Lily had gotten it right making someone else their Secret Keeper. While Alice didn't know who they had chosen- though she guessed it was probably Sirius- she was quite sure whoever it was was seeing James and Lily regularly, giving them updates on the Order, filling them in on the news, and just helping to ease their worried thoughts.

As Neville ran in from the next room dressed in the dragon costume that Alice had made him for Halloween, Alice sighed- Neville should be outside trick-or-treating tonight instead of stuck inside. Frank came running in a second later and Neville let out a shriek of laughter and scurried from the room causing Alice to smile despite her uneasy feeling. She joined in the chase but couldn't help but feel like something about the day was off.

It was October 31, 1981 and Alice Longbottom was restless.

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**So there you go! Reviews are a nice big mug of hot chocolate on this blustery day :)**


	9. Mad

__**Hey y'all! Happy Sunday! I'm not sure how I feel about this one- I wrote like three different versions and this is the one I liked best...**

**As always, I'm not, nor have I ever been, JK Rowling.**

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_Mad_

He was mad- he had to be! Why had he done this? What had possessed him to move hundreds of thousands of miles away from home and his mother's cooking? Charlie had no idea what had made him think he could do this on his own.

It had been a long day. His Portkey had arrived in Romania at 7:30 that morning- only 5:30 back in Devon- and then from there he had spent most of the day being familiarized with the camp, its people and its charges- the dragons. When he had left home he had been so sure that he was making the right decision but as the day wore on he missed seeing all the familiar faces of England in Diagon Alley and his little brothers' constant bickering and the way Ginny watched jealously as all of her brothers flew around the paddock and then sneak back out later to steal their brooms and fly on her own. And he really missed his mum's cooking.

That night when he was sitting in the reservation's pub, nursing a pint and picking at his soggy fish and chips, a petite girl slid onto the barstool next to him.

"You look new."

Charlie couldn't hide the smirk that slid onto his face. This was the first face all day that wasn't giving him directions or orders. Plus she was rather pretty with her blonde hair and big, green eyes and her wide smile. Her accent was interesting too- Australia if Charlie was correct.

"You could say that."

"You can't be more than 17 or 18." It was a statement, not a question.

"Neither can you." She smirked and ordered a drink from the passing bartender. "I'm Rebecca, by the way."

"Charlie Weasley."

They made small talk while he poked at his food. Rebecca gave him pointers about working and living on the reservation and Charlie told her all about England and Hogwarts. When he brought up Quidditch and the fact that the English National team had been scouting him her mouth dropped open almost comically.

"So what brings you all the way down here then?"

"I'm mad, that's what."

She looked at him with a thoughtful expression for a few moments and then smiled. "Have you ever read _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland_ Charlie Weasley?"

"Er, I think maybe I read it to my little sister a time or two. Why?"

"Because I'm going to tell you a secret and since you've read it you'll understand- we're all mad here."

Charlie couldn't help but laugh at the conspiratorial smile on her face. Plus it made him feel a little better that she didn't think he was crazy- or at least crazier than anyone else there.

As he waved goodbye to Rebecca and entered his tiny cabin later that night, he couldn't help but feel that his decision to move so far away from home was mad. But, he realized as he brushed his teeth and got ready for bed, things were always more fun with a madman around.

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**All right, there it is! Please let me know what you think- reviews make me a happy camper :)**


	10. Winter

__**Ok, here it is. I just want to say thanks again for everyone who has reviewed, favorited, or followed this. So, THANKS! As usual, I'm not JK Rowling, I don't own Harry Potter and I'm not the queen.**

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_Winter_

The grounds of Hogwarts were a startling white when Lily Evans woke up on the first morning of the winter holiday. The sun was out and the snow-covered ground glinted in the sunlight. Lily smiled as she slipped her feet into a pair of slippers. She had always loved the snow and the winter time, especially at Hogwarts. It made the place look even more beautiful and magical. She loved wearing thick wool sweaters and sipping cocoa by the fire and playing in the snow and going ice skating and absolutely everything that winter had to offer.

It was strange not being at home for Christmas. Her mother was spending the holidays with Petunia and Vernon and his family and she had advised Lily that her Christmas would be much more pleasant spent at school.

And so far, it had been a very pleasant holiday. She and Marlene were the only ones left in their dorm- Marlene's parents had gone to visit her brother in the States- and it was unusually quiet without Mary's constant chatter and Alice's tinkling laugh.

"Morning Lils." Lily smiled at the small blonde girl stretching beneath her covers.

"Morning Marlene."

Lily showered before the two girls dressed and went down to breakfast. When they arrived, the tables in the Great Hall were sparsely occupied as most students had gone home for Christmas so the girls had their pick of seats.

"Oi! Evans, McKinnon- snowball fight in twenty minutes!"

Lily looked at James Potter with narrowed eyes. It was true that their previous animosity had turned into a surprisingly easy friendship and Lily may or may not have been trying to keep the butterflies in her stomach in check as he smirked at her and he may not be the same arrogant prat he had been when they were thirteen, but he was still James Potter. And James Potter still loved to pull pranks and do silly, stupid things.

"All right. We'll meet you out there." Marlene agreed easily. Lily sighed and finished her breakfast- she really needed the butterflies to stop fluttering around her stomach so that she didn't vomit all over the table.

They hurried upstairs and bundled up in heavy jackets and layers of socks and warm mittens and hats and boots- Lily went so far as to put a pair of flannel pants on under her jeans.

"Oh Merlin, we look like Oompa Loompas." Lily laughed at Marlene's confused expression. "Never mind, let's just go."

Lily enjoyed the crunch of the snow as she stepped onto the grounds. The chilly air bit at her face and the wind blew her hair around and she couldn't be happier.

"Glad you could join us, ladies." Sirius was grinning at them from one side of an empty stretch of snow behind a packed snow fort. "We've already decided- Evans you'll be with Prongs, Wormtail, and Reynolds and McKinnon's with me, Moony, and Goose."

"Wait, Goose? You let them call you Goose, Greg?" Lily chuckled at Marlene's reddening cheeks- it was common knowledge that Marlene fancied Greg Marling like crazy. Greg just shrugged and beckoned Marlene to join them and Lily joined her team on the opposite side of the 'battlefield' and crouched down in front of the three of them.

"So what's our strategy boys?"

James gave her that cocky grin of his and dove into an explanation of offensive and defensive strategies- she should have known better than to ask the Quidditch captain about strategy.

Lily ducked and dove through the pelting of snowballs and slapped high fives with her teammates when she made a particularly good throw. The fight was only over when Marlene hit James right in the face with a rather large snowball and Marlene started complaining that her clothes were all wet and cold.  
They left Greg and Thomas Reynolds as they went to their common room and went back upstairs to Gryffindor tower. Lily and Marlene changed into warm, dry clothes and by the time they went back down to the common room, the boys were waiting with a tray of cocoa and biscuits.

"How'd you lot manage to sneak all the way down there and get back so quickly? And you changed!"

All four boys just smirked in a superior way that made Lily want to slap the lot of them, but she refrained and took the steaming mug of cocoa from Remus instead.

As she settled in on the couch next to Marlene Lily sighed contentedly. That day was the perfect example of why she loved the winter time. Warm sweaters, snowball fights, cocoa and friends- yes, spending the winter holidays at Hogwarts was the best idea she'd had in ages.

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**There you go- please let me know what you guys think! I love my readers and I love reviews!**


	11. Promise

**Ok. I had serious problems writing this. Not really because I couldn't think of anything to write. It was more the fact that my concentration/attention span tonight was equal to that of a squirrel. But I finally finished and here it is!**

**Disclaimer: Queen Rowling owns Harry Potter, not me.**

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**_Promise_**

Hugo really hated promises. Or maybe it would be more accurate to say he hated one specific promise he made when he was fourteen. At the time it had seemed like no big deal, but when he sat across from Alice Longbottom and she laughed with Lily and Elizabeth he couldn't figure out for the life of him why he had made it.

**When Frank had cornered him at a summer gathering at the Burrow and asked him to promise he wouldn't try and date Alice, Hugo had agreed almost immediately. At fourteen, Alice was just the girl he had grown up playing with. But as the four of them studied in the weeks leading up to their O.W.L.s, Hugo couldn't help but notice the smattering of freckles on the bridge of her nose and how her eyes reminded him of melted chocolate and the way her curly blond hair hung in her face when she wrote.**

******Sometimes he thought about dragging Alice off to an empty classroom and just snogging her senseless, promise be damned. But then he remembered how tall Frank was and all those muscles he had that could probably pound him flat and thought better of it.**

******Hugo tried to focus on his studies but when the test was less than a week away and Lily was turning into a slave driver, not to mention all the comments Rose was making about his study habits and his mother's letters containing scheduling and testing tips, his mind was swirling with guilt. He had never wanted to simultaneously break a promise ****_and _****keep it so badly. He had been having this problem for at least a month now- maybe longer if he cared to admit it to himself.**

******If it weren't for the stupid promise he would have asked her to Hogsmeade months ago but his stupid sense of nobility and honor- damn his parents for raising him right- kept reminding him that he had indeed promised not to do just that.**

******So when Hugo kissed Alice Longbottom two days before exams started no one was more surprised than he was. It was one of the few promises he had ever broken and he couldn't believe he had but at the same time, he didn't care at all and neither did Alice.**

******Hugo just hoped Frank would see things in a similar light.**

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**Meh. Idk. I'm still not sure about it but technically it's tomorrow so I just wanted to get something posted before I go to sleep. Still though, please let me know what you think!**


	12. Summer

**Hi guys. I really should have been doing my homework for class tomorrow, but I decided you guys and this was more important :P Well, at least it's more entertaining.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and I'm not JK Rowling. I would hope you all know this by now.**

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****Ginny had always loved summer. She liked the sun shining through her window in the mornings and the feeling of walking around barefoot in the grass and swimming in the cool water of the river that ran behind the Burrow. She got to sleep in and she didn't have to wear her heavy school robes all the time and she could fly around the paddock whenever she wanted.

Summertime was the part of the year that she could be completely relaxed and not have to worry about school or grades or anything involving responsibility. It was the time of the year to do whatever she wanted whenever she wanted to do it.

This summer, though was different. As she putzed around her dark room throwing her previously discarded blanket back onto her bed and straightening the books on the shelf and rearranging the picture frames on her desk, she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy about what this summer, and all the seasons that would follow it really, would bring.

This summer everyone knew that Voldemort was back. The Burrow had different members of the Order popping in almost every day to leave a message for some other member or else a full-on meeting was taking place, during which Ron and Ginny would be banished upstairs or outside. Not to mention the fact that it had only been a little over a month since Sirius had died.

Ginny had taken the news of his death rather hard- she had become rather fond of the man during her stay at Grimmauld Place, with his mischievous smile and his funny stories and the way he loved Harry so much. Yes, Ginny was quite sad about the loss of someone she had called a friend, but she knew it must be 100 times worse for Harry.

She sighed and leant up against the open window, willing a breeze to waft in. The stars were particularly bright and she smiled at the normalcy of them. She could answer Dean's latest letter, though she wished she could meet up with him in Diagon Alley. She knew her mum would never allow it though. There were too many rumors about disappearances going around for her mother to allow her out on her own.  
She thought about reading, but she felt too anxious to sit still and pay attention to a book and besides, with Hermione asleep in the room she couldn't very well turn the light on.

She wondered if everyone else was asleep. She really hoped they were- it would be much easier to sneak outside if they were all sleeping.  
She pulled on a pair of shorts under her flimsy nightdress and opened her door as little as she possibly could. There were no lights shining downstairs that she could see so, as quickly and quietly as she could, Ginny descended and crept outside. She pulled open the door of the broom shed and grabbed her Cleansweep.

She noticed two sets of footprints and some drag-lines in the dust on the floor and briefly wondered who had made them before she pushed off the ground.

This was how summer should be, she thought. Flying around the backyard, her hair whipping around her, not a care in the world.

Hermione had arrived about a week before and Harry had been there for two days, having arrived with Dumbledore and some ungodly hour of the morning. They and Ron had spent the majority of their time together avoiding Phlegm- though Ron wasn't quite as happy about this as the rest- either wandering around outside or holed up in Ron's room playing Exploding Snap and Gobstones. That was how summer was supposed to be, carefree and easy.

Maybe tomorrow she could convince Hermione to play a game of two-a-side Quidditch with her and the boys. She knew her mum would spend the whole of breakfast offering Harry more food because he 'just looks so peaky'. And Ron and Hermione would bicker like crazy and Phlegm would drive all the women in the house mad.

Maybe, if she tried hard enough, she could pretend that it was a normal summer, just like any other. She could forget her responsibilities and just relax, because that was what summer was for, right?

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**There you go. I don't know about everyone else, but summer is coming to an end here and I must say I'm going to miss the warm weather but I am more than ready for fall and cozy sweaters and pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks.**

**Also, reviews are just as good as cozy sweaters and pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks. Just saying. :)**


	13. Denial

**Hey guys! I know I missed yesterday, but I promise this was written yesterday! I just wasn't able to get it uploaded because it was such a busy day. But it was written yesterday and you'll get another later today.**

**Disclaimer: Obviously I'm not JK Rowling. Trust me, I look nothing like her. Plus I'm not British.**

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****Remus looked out the window of his flat and watched the rain falling. He still couldn't make himself believe it. It had been a month since that horrible night. A month spent crying and breaking things and yelling at the walls of his empty flat. A month spent in denial.  
All of his best friends were gone. Lily and James killed trying to protect little Harry, Peter killed because he stood up to the traitor, and Sirius imprisoned because he was the cause of it all.

He didn't know what to do. He was truly alone now. Most of his school-mates were dead- or as good as dead- because the war had become so all-encompassing of the Wizarding world. Harry had been sent off to live with his aunt and uncle where Remus was unlikely to see him for a long while. Both of his parents were long gone, his mother having contracted a fatal case of dragon pox in his fifth year of school and his father having suffered a major heart attack only a year prior.

And now he was alone. Alone and refusing to believe it. It was as if he knew in the back of his mind that they were dead, but it was just easier to believe they were still alive. To believe that James and Lily and Peter were alive and Sirius was his normal self, a man who would die rather than betray his friends.

Some days Remus drowned himself in a bottle of Firewhisky. His various states of inebriation made it much easier to believe his friends were still alive.

Other days he would just lay around his flat doing nothing but blaming himself for his friends' deaths. He should have protected them. He should have known Sirius was the traitor- though he never gave any indication that he was. Or better yet, he should have kept Sirius from ever becoming a traitor.

But most days he pretended that nothing was wrong, even when the truth was threatening to pop out from the back of his head. Most days he convinced himself that James and Lily were safe in their home with Harry and Sirius and Peter were just on their way over to his place to get take-away and discuss Order business. Most days he convinced himself that the six of them were still one big happy family.

Most days, denial was just easier than the truth.

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**And there you go. I wrote this (yesterday) in my sociology class- it seems that this is where I get all my writing done lately :P- and left class all depressed because poor Remus. Also, thanks to everyone who has reviewed, followed, or favorited this so far! You guys are wonderful! And reviews are totally what keeps me going. They're like a nice, fluffy sweater on these 55 degree days!**


	14. Outside

**See, just like I promised! Here's today's actual entry for the challenge (or whatever you want to call it). Two Marauders in one day. For me, that makes it a rather good day :)**

**Disclaimer: Nope, I didn't turn into Jo between my last entry and this one. Sorry to disappoint.**

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****_Outside_

The first thing he did was look up at the sky. It was dark and brimming with brightly shining stars. He swam to shore, still in the form of a dog. When he reached the water's edge he transformed and hid in a small cluster of trees. Sirius Black pushed his wet hair out of his face as he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, listening to the wind blowing and the bugs buzzing around and the absence of the Dementors' rattling breath.

He hadn't been outside in 12 years. And it felt absolutely wonderful.

He knew he had things to do, a long journey ahead of him. He had to see Harry before he went off to Hogwarts. Who knew if he would get the chance when everything was said and done? He needed to see Remus too. He needed to see how they were doing, what kinds of lives they had made in his absence.

He needed to find a place to hide. He really needed to transform back into his Animagus form so that when the Ministry discovered his escape, they wouldn't be able to find him.

But first, he needed to breathe in the fresh air and look up at the twinkling stars and feel the wind against his face.

He was outside and he could feel the anxiety that had been sitting in his chest lessen. He knew he still had impossible tasks ahead of him, but hadn't breaking out of Azkaban been something that was supposed to be impossible? He, Sirius Black, had done what no other man had yet done and escaped the hell of Azkaban. If he had done the impossible once, he could do it agian. He could avenge James and Lily, he could tell Remus the truth, he could know Harry. Everything could turn out perfectly.

All the impossible things that were in front of him seemed posible now that he was outside.

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**There you go! I hope you enjoyed it- if you did, please let me know in a review! And if you didn't, well let me know that too so I can improve!**


	15. Thanks

**Hey y'all. This one was kind of a quickie and I'm not sure how I feel about it. It was one of those things where I knew what I wanted to write but couldn't get the words to come out right. So idk. Here it is.**

**Disclaimer: Still not Jo.**

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****_Thanks_

Narcissa Malfoy sat with her son and her husband, clutching Draco's arm as if it were a lifeline, in the noisy Great Hall. It was over- he was really gone. The man who had ruined the lives of her whole family, gone. Her family had been ripped apart and doomed the moment Bella joined him. First he had taken Bella. Then Andromeda had left because she had seen through Voldemort's dark glamor, choosing love instead. Next to go was Regulus, killed at 18 because he had gotten scared and tried to back out. Lucius had been a part of the Dark Lord's plans even before he had become her husband and after his stint in Azkaban after the Ministry, the man she knew had disappeared. And then, when Draco had turned 16, he had taken her son.

Narcissa could tell that Draco didn't know what he was getting himself into. He was proud to join the Dark Lord, proud to follow in his father's footsteps and regain the prestige of the Malfoy name. But then he had received his Mark and she could tell by the pleading look on his face as the black design was burned into his skin- he didn't want to do this, not really.

So when she had the chance to make sure that Draco wouldn't be taken from her too, she had done what it took to save him. She didn't care anymore about Voldemort's plans- he was done taking the people she loved.

So she had lied. And sitting there in the commotion of joy and grief and every other emotion the people around her were feeling, Narcissa knew that she had made the right choice. She saw her sister sitting across the room with a baby held to her chest, crying quietly for her daughter and her husband and her son-in-law, and Narcissa felt her grip on Draco's arm tighten.

She was taken aback when Harry Potter's two best friends came up to the three of them and the girl cleared her throat awkwardly.  
"We don't mean to bother you," she started, "but, er, we just wanted to say thank you, Mrs. Malfoy. You know, for the forest." She looked at the boy, who was determinedly looking at the ceiling, and nudged him in the side with her elbow.

"Er, yeah. Thanks."

They walked away and both Draco and Lucius looked at Narcissa, Draco in confusion and Lucius in a mixture of incredulity and contempt. She knew he was dying to say something concerning the girl's blood status but Narcissa no longer cared to hear about such things- it was all over. She had what she wanted- her son- and she didn't care about anything or anyone else at the moment.

Though she supposed she probably needed to suck up her pride and say thanks to Harry Potter for ending it all- if those two could say thank you, so could she.

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**Yup, there you go. I'm hoping tomorrow's is better. Still, let me know what you think! And to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, followed so far, I love you!**


	16. Haze

**Meh. Lazy Sunday today. And not like the song. But anyway, here's today's challenge!**

**Nope, I'm not JK Rowling and I don't own Harry Potter.**

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_Haze_

Fred woke up surrounded by a thick fog. His memory was hazy and his body ached all over. He looked around, trying to see through the density of the fog and realized he was somewhere he had never been. He got to his feet and reached for his wand, holding it out in front of him in case of an attack. Then he remembered- the battle! What had happened? Where was he? Had someone brought him here when he had passed out? What was happening at Hogwarts- he had to get back!

Fred heard footsteps and whirled around- and almost passed out again. Standing in front of him was a man he hadn't seen in- it had to be 17 years. He had bright red hair and his mother's brown eyes and the man was a good few inches taller than Fred. He was wearing suspenders and a polka-dotted bow tie with his shirt and trousers.

"Uncle Gideon?"

The man smirked. "Long time no see, eh Freddie?"

Fred barely remembered the man- he had only been 3 when he had died. Maybe the haze was addling his brains.

"Oi! Gideon- did you find him?"

Both Fred and his uncle turned to find a third red-haired man jogging towards them out of the fog.

"Got him right here, bro."

"Uncle Fabian."

The smirk was identical to his twin's. It caused Fred to look around frantically, suddenly remembering his own twin.  
"What's going on? Where's George- what are you two doing here?"

Both of his uncles carefree smirks turned to sad smiles and Fred felt his stomach flip flop. He shouldn't be here. His uncles were dead. The only reason he could be seeing them right now...

"I'm dead?"

Fred's voice came out quiet and scared, and he thought he sounded very like a small child but he didn't much care at the moment. Their silence answered his question and he suddenly felt as if he was suffocating. The haze was closing in on him and it felt like it was going to crush him like a falling wall.

"Woah, easy there Freddie. You're all right."

"Well, I'd say all right is a relative term."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. Being dead may not classify as 'all right' to some people."

"I thought you two were going to be sensitive. Break it to him easy."

Fred looked up, panting, and found himself face to face with a girl he had never met, though he had seen photos of her. And he had seen those eyes before too.

"You-you're Harry's mum."

The girl with the dark auburn hair and the green eyes smiled kindly at him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Your uncles mean well, they just forget that they've been dead a long time. But, yes Fred, I'm sorry."  
"Is- is anyone else here? From Hogwarts I mean."

Lily nodded sadly. "Well, Remus' wife just came through a moment before you woke up. Sirius is tending to her now. And a boy called Colin Creevey. He looks barely 16."

Fred looked at his uncles- they were identical to each other just as he was to George. Tonks and Colin were dead. How many others were dead that Lily didn't know about?

"Lily! Lily it's Remus!" Fred watched her face light up and then fall a second later. She excused herself and ran away, enveloped by the fog.

"I have to go back."

His uncles both raised their eyebrows and looked at each other.

"Er, you can't do that Freddie."

"I have to! George needs me! And Mum and Dad! And Percy had just come back. And I have to help Harry, I promised I'd help him win! I have to-"

He had started to run around looking for a door, a hole in the ground, a black hole even- anything to take him back. He felt like he was pulling his hair out when his uncles each grabbed one of his arms. He could feel hot tears falling down his face but he really didn't care- he needed to get back to his family. They needed him! And, he thought feeling particularly childish, he needed them.

"You can't go back Freddie."

He stopped running around and stared at his uncles. They wouldn't lie to him. They would help him go back if they could.

"Don't worry. They'll be here much sooner than you think. Time really flies when you've got all the time in the world."

"Now let's go watch your friend Harry kick Voldemort's ass, yeah?"

Fred wiped his eyes and nodded. Trying to seem a bit 'cooler' around his uncles he cleared his throat and asked, "So, you guys got Quidditch around here?"

His uncles laughed and started leading him away. Fred took a deep breath, pushing back his emotions and followed them into the haze.

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**Stupid Fred. I need a drink to help me get over writing that one. Let me know what you all think of it!**


	17. Tremble

**Hullo there. Here we go. Hope you all like it :)**

**Disclaimer: Still not JK Rowling. I wish I owned Harry Potter because those books are brilliant.**

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****_Tremble_  
Ron woke with a start and looked around the tent. His heart was beating fast and his breath was coming in shallow pants. Even though the cold February air was permeating the thin fabric of the tent and the warming charms had begun to falter Ron could feel his forehead and the back of his neck covered in sweat. The tent was quiet, though, nothing but the sound of the tree branches scratching the canvas walls. As Ron padded quietly into the tent's small kitchen he tried to recall what he had been dreaming about, but was unable to recall much more than trees whizzing past him and a high-pitched, frightened scream.

He filled a glass with water and drank it all in one. It wasn't unusual for Ron to wake up from nightmares. Those days, all three of them suffered from them. More often than not if Ron woke up, someone else was up to talk and settle him.

The others seemed to be having a better night than him, he thought looking at the two of them, both asleep in their beds. He sighed as he made his way back to bed but stopped in the middle of the room when he heard a whimper.

He turned around and found Hermione curled up with her arms wrapped around herself. She was shaking and her whimpers were growing louder, starting to turn into mumbled pleas. Harry was starting to stir on the other side of the room.

Ron sat gingerly on the edge of her bed and tried waking her with a gentle shake and her name. He could feel her tremble in his grasp. He started shaking her more forcefully, raising his voice until she gasped and her eyes popped open.

She was still shaking and tears were falling freely down her face. Ron pulled her close and started murmuring words of comfort. As her eyes dried and her body stopped trembling she sniffed and shook her head.

"I'm sorry Ron. I didn't mean to wake you."

"Don't worry about it, you didn't. I was already up."

"Well thank you. I'm all right now, though."

He nodded and started back to his bed, but stopped again in the middle of the room and turned back to see Hermione wiping her face with her sleeve.

"Hermione?"

"Hmm?" Her voice was still thick and Ron wanted nothing more than to wrap her in his arms and hold her close.

"We're gonna be all right. It'll all be ok."

She gave him a watery smile. "Thanks Ron. Maybe your emotional range is bigger than a teaspoon."

Ron chuckled and shook his head. "Goodnight Hermione."

"Goodnight Ron."

He watched her turn so that she was facing the wall before going back to bed.

As he pulled the cover up to his chest, Ron came to a decision. Ron hated the nightmares and he hated seeing Harry and Hermione have them too. But most of all, he hated watching Hermione struggle. Feeling her tremble like that and cry openly in his arms seemed to have triggered something in him. This needed to end. If Harry was going to keep obsessing over those Hallows, Ron was going to step up and take charge. Tomorrow they would leave the forest and go searching for Horcruxes- anywhere anyone had ever associated with Voldemort. There would be no more sitting around talking about it- they were going to end this.

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**Well, there you go! Chocolate chip cookies for all my readers with extra chocolate chips for reviewers!**


	18. Wind

**Hey y'all. Firstly I want to thank everyone who has read past chapters and left reviews/favorited/followed- you guys are seriously awesome!**

**Disclaimer: Oh yeah, I'm still not JK Rowling and I can't think of any witty way to say it.**

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****_Wind_

Marlene McKinnon pushed the long blonde hair out of her face and looked out at the grounds of Hogwarts. From her spot on the floor of the Astronomy Tower she could see Hagrid's hut, smoke puffing out the chimney, the greenhouses all lined up in a row, the edge of the forest teeming with unseen life, all of which was being slightly obscured by the leaves blowing in the wind. It looked like a beautiful painting of reds and oranges and golds. She huffed as the wind blew her hair into her face again.

She had come up here to think- it was a quiet, peaceful place where people barely ventured outside of class or the odd late-night snog. She was glad there was no one up here tonight- she had a lot to think about tonight.

It was almost the summer hols. Well, actually, it would just be summer now as her final year at Hogwarts was only days from being over. To say that she was scared shitless was a huge understatement.

Things outside Hogwarts weren't getting any better. Voldemort was gaining more and more followers, though it was becoming difficult to tell who was joining him of their own accord and who was being forced and coerced.

What Voldemort and those nasty Death Eaters were doing was wrong and Marlene wanted nothing more than to see them stopped. She had always wanted to join the fight- this war was the one thing she was truly passionate about. It made her blood boil to think about Voldemort, that scum of a man, killing people like Lily and Mary- both of whom were probably better witches than her- just because they had Muggles for parents. She truly hated Voldemort- and she didn't actually _hate _people- and she could think of nothing that would please her more than to see him dead.

Marlene wasn't a violent being by nature, but the fact that this bastard Voldemort thought he had some right to decide who was 'worthy of magic' and who wasn't made her angrier than she could ever remember being. She wanted to fight in this war and she wanted to end this reign of terror.

But now that the time had come for her to actually get out there was looming like a dark cloud she was feeling much less confident in her abilities. Sure, she was a good enough witch, but there was so much she still hadn't learned.

As the breeze whipped a few stray leaves past her face she sighed. What would it be like to get carried away by the wind like one of those leaves- to be weightless and be carried wherever the wind felt like taking her. She could escape the horror that was happening all around her in the wizarding world. Things could be so much simpler. If she could just float away and leave all this trouble behind things would be so much easier, so much less to worry about.

But then she thought of her boyfriend Greg and her friends. What would she do without Mary and Lily and Alice? And her family- could she just leave her parents and her big brother? No- she had to stay. She had to fight. She couldn't leave them, she couldn't let the wind take her away, she was supposed to be here.

Still, the wind was pretty tempting though.

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**There you go! Hope you liked it! If you did, please leave me a review! And if you didn't, well, please leave me a review!**


	19. Knowledge

**Hey guys. It's a short one today, but here it is!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, not JK Rowling. Because let me tell you, I am so not averse to the idea of a prequel. If I were Jo, there would have been a prequel ages ago.**

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****_Knowledge_

Molly knew they were planning something. Even if she hadn't noticed the way the three of them were communicating through looks, trying to get out of earshot so they could plan, she would have known. This was Harry they were talking about and she knew there was no way Harry was going to sit around and just let things go on around him- he was going to go out there and take care of things himself. Because that's just who Harry was.

And for Molly, or anyone, to think that Ron and Hermione wouldn't go with him wherever he went was absolute foolishness. Those three were a package deal- where one went the other two were sure to follow. Molly was so grateful that the three of them had found each other. Knowing that Ron had Harry and Hermione had always put Molly at ease. But they thought they were invincible when they were together and it just wasn't true- no one is invincible, especially not at 17.

And Molly was sure they were planning something.

Molly had asked everyone if they knew what they were planning. Ginny had just stared at her and then shook her head before fleeing to her room. Arthur had told her not to worry yet- they were still here. And Remus- his words had been the most disconcerting.

'As far as I know, Harry doesn't plan to return to Hogwarts. I believe he has plans to carry out the orders that Dumbledore gave him before his death. And I'm not sure there is anything any of us can do to stop him.'

From that point on Molly kept the three of them separated and busy. She had a feeling that they knew she wasn't just trying to distract them from the grief of Mad-Eye's death, but she hoped that maybe if they couldn't plan then maybe it would at least delay their departure.

She sighed as she heard Harry sneaking upstairs where Ron and Hermione had already gone. They were far too young to be doing whatever it was they were planning on doing.

Knowing that the three of them were going off, probably to defeat You-Know-Who was absolutely terrifying and that knowledge was enough to make Molly stomp upstairs and scare the three of them with her sudden appearance.

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**There you go. Molly Weasley love. Please let me know what you think! :)**


	20. Diamond

**Hey guys, I know I missed yesterday, but I was gone from 8 am yesterday until 2 this morning and I just didn't have a chance to write anything yesterday. Believe me, I'm as shocked as you are that I actually have some semblance of a life. **

**I also want to thank everyone who has reviewed/followed/favorited this! You guys are so awesome and I appreciate it so much! **

**So anyway, here we go.**

**Disclaimer: I'm not JK Rowling, though I am excited to read her new book!**

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****_Diamond_

He was on his way to meet Ron and Harry at the Leaky Cauldron when he saw it out of the corner of his eye. He looked around at the passersby before walking up to the window that held the glinting object. The flip flop he felt in his stomach at the sight of the small diamond nestled in the black velvet box surprised him. He couldn't deny that he had been thinking about asking Angelina to marry him for a while now, but he hadn't mentioned it to anyone.

He knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. They had been living together for just over a month and every morning George woke up next to her he hoped that he would be able to do it for the rest of his life.

As George stood on the sidewalk admiring how the clear stone glinted and shimmered in the afternoon sunlight, images of the past flashed through his head.

The summer following Fred's death, George barely spoke a word to anyone. Until Angelina came along and reminded him how mad Fred would be to see George shutting himself away.

That moment, the moment when Angelina yelled at him that he better come back to life and be George again- even slapping him upside the head, that was the moment he knew he loved her.

Angelina was the only one who could always, unfailingly get through to him.

Then, completely out of nowhere, more images passed through his head. But these images were unfamiliar to George though, he realized, quite thrilling.

Angelina in a flowing white dress walking towards him. Angelina with a hand on her swelling stomach. Angelina cooing to a bundle of blankets that had tiny arms waving about.

With those images in mind, he hurried inside and asked a salesman if he could see the ring up close.

As George walked into the Leaky Cauldron and found Ron and Harry waiting for him on the other side of the room, he put a hand in his jacket pocket and closed it around the small velvet box. He couldn't help himself as his grin spread from ear to ear. Er, well, you get the idea.

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**Well, there you go! Hope you like it. If you do, please review! If not, well, let me know that too!**


	21. Formal

**All right, this was just the first thing that came to my mind when I skimmed over my list of remaining words and I think it turned out all right. The idea just kind of popped into my head and I thought 'they would totally do that' so I just went with it! Also, I want to thank my reviewers again- you guys are seriously amazing. And it's always a wonderful feeling to get an email that someone followed/favorited my work! So, thank you!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing as I'm not JK Rowling. I just like to pretend sometimes.**

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****_Formal_

James hated these stupid Ministry affairs, and he had been to his fair share in his 15 years. That's just what happens when you're Harry Potter's son.

He hated wearing dress robes and the food was always bland and inedible and the formal atmosphere was stifling. The old witches wandering around in their ancient looking robes and their moth-eaten hats and the pompous old wizards laughing at their own jokes and telling stories of their 'glory days' to anyone who crosses their paths were more than annoying.

And James wasn't even old enough to legally drink. Which sucked because a little Firewhisky would make things so much easier.

So he sat between Lily, who was fidgeting in the frilly dress that their aunt Fleur had gotten her for her birthday, and Al who looked downright uncomfortable in his black dress robes, and watched all the party-goers dressed in their fanciest robes gliding around on the dance floor to the boring music. His parents were pushing through the crowd to get a drink from the bar, Teddy and Victoire were laughing as they danced wildly through all the older couples who were giving them snobbish looks, his uncle George led Roxanne around on his feet, Rose and Hugo were sitting on the other side of the table arguing about some trivial music fact like they always seemed to be doing. He shivered unpleasantly when he saw his uncle Ron and aunt Hermione snogging in a dark corner.

James sighed and poked at the rubbery chicken that sat on his plate. This thing really couldn't end soon enough. When he looked up again Rose and Hugo were getting to their feet excitedly, whatever disagreement they were having suddenly unimportant.

"All right- are you lot ready to go?"

James grinned and jumped up from his seat, his siblings doing the same. They followed their parents outside, out into London, and down the street a bit.

It was late, but this was London after all, so the streets were full of people pointing at the strangely dressed group making its way down the street. James hardly noticed, though, because their destination was in sight. Challenging Al to a race, he sped off down the sidewalk, his brother not far behind, and barged into a pizza place he had come to know quite well. As soon as the door opened he was bombarded by noise and lots of red hair.

The rest of his family was already present and James took his usual seat at a table with Louis and Fred.

It seemed that none of the members of the Weasley clan enjoyed the Ministry to-do's because it had been the tradition, long before James was even born, to cut out early and head to this same pizza place for a more casual party. James found that he didn't even mind the dress robes so much as he bit into a slice of cheesy pizza. He looked around and smiled. Teddy and Victoire were dancing with Lily and Rose to a classic rock song playing on the old jukebox, Al and Hugo were having a pizza eating contest, his uncles Charlie and Bill were singing a rather sloppy rendition of some old pub song, and his parents were laughing with uncle Ron and aunt Hermione. Even his uncle Percy was- most unwisely- taking a shot of some kind of alcohol with his uncle George. The night was spent talking and laughing despite the boring 'party' they had just come from.

James hated formal affairs, but he went anyway- even after his parents had stopped making him- because of the party that always followed.

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**Well, there you go! Please let me know what you think in a review- I promise it's painless!**


	22. Letters

**Hey guys. I AM SO SO SORRY! I know it's been far too long for a word-a-day challenge, but it's truly been a pretty crappy week. My cat George got sick this weekend and started having seizures so we had to put him to sleep on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday his sister Fred (I thought she was a boy when I named them) had surgery. Plus I've had school and I just didn't have the time or the ability really to write.**

**But I have finally returned! We're in the home stretch now, only about a week left!**

**Disclaimer: I did not turn into JK Rowling since last week. I did buy her new book though!**

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****_Letters_

When she was missing him she wrote him a letter. She didn't like to talk about him with the others- it was too painful. They had had such a short time together and then suddenly he was gone.

Some people had thought she didn't love him because she didn't take his name. Of course they were wrong- she had always been independent and getting married wouldn't change that. And he didn't ask her to change. They didn't have children- they were both much too old for that and she always said she had enough children to look after up at the school anyway. And then he had been bitten by that wretched plant and she felt her heart break for the second time in her life.

At first, she wrote to him every day. She would write of her job and her friends. She wrote about leaving their cottage in Hogsmeade, the loneliness of staying there by herself having taken its toll, and returning to her quarters at the castle. She wrote about her students and the shenanigans they got up to. She told him about Albus' silly jokes and Hagrid's newest- and almost always dangerous- creatures and Sybill's far-fetched prophecies. She wrote about how much she missed him and how much she loved him.

Then, after she finished every letter, she sealed it, addressed it to her husband, and stored it in a drawer in the desk in her study.

As time wore on, she wrote to him less and less until it was only once or twice in a month that she would sit down to write him a letter. Not because she missed him any less, but because there were things to do, especially once the Order resumed. She was always busy with something or other.

Then they won. Harry Potter defeated Voldemort and they all gathered in the Great Hall to rejoice their victory and to mourn their losses. And when she went up to her study to retire for the night, she sat down at her desk, pulled out a roll of parchment, and wrote to him. She wrote like she hadn't in a long time and as she wrote she felt the weight of all the anxiety and sadness pour out of her.

Like always, Minerva sealed the parchment, wrote his name on the front and opened the drawer of her desk. She held it in her hand for a moment before slipping it onto the pile of unopened letters addressed to her Elphinstone.

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**There you go! Thanks so much for reading :) What did you guys think? Reviews are hot apple cider and fluffy sweaters!**


	23. Transformation

**Hiya. Not much to say today except I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I don't own Harry Potter and I'm not gaining anything by putting this up here. Except, hopefully, for your reviews ;)**

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****_Transformation_

Luna marveled at the boy- no, man was a more appropriate word- who stood beside her. He was so full of confidence and determination. Gone was the boy who could barely shoot sparks from his wand and in his place stood a young man who was braver than most and who was set on doing the right thing.

He stepped forward and the group of students in front of them quieted immediately. This new Neville commanded respect from his peers. She could see it in their eyes- while she and Ginny were seen as leaders of the D.A. Neville was the mastermind behind their schemes. He was hell bent on protecting his peers and the younger students especially. Sometimes Luna thought he was a little manic about it all.

As Neville spoke about their most recent work of graffiti- Ginny had come up with the idea to write _Dumbledore's Army: Still Recruiting_ in big, bold letters on the wall outside the Great Hall- Luna got a little lost in thought. The changes that had taken place at Hogwarts this year were unsettling to say the least, though not entirely unexpected. Luna had always loved her school, but it just wasn't _her_ Hogwarts anymore. With Snape lording it over all of them from the Headmaster's office and the Carrows running around torturing students for fun, it just wasn't the school she had fallen in love with five years previous.

The change in the atmosphere and the goings on at the school had caused everyone in attendance to change as well, whether for the better or not. Neville wasn't the only one who had changed. Lavender was more focused and much less worried about her appearance, Ernie was much less pompous and uptight, the fire in Ginny's eyes had grown at least 100 times stronger.

As she thought about the small group of people before her and her two best friends beside her and Harry, Ron, and Hermione out on the run somewhere and all the changes that this war had wrought in all of them, she felt confident that they would win. She had always been an optimist, even after her mother's early death, and she was optimistic that they would come out on top.

She wasn't foolish to think that it would be easy or that no one would get hurt, but somehow she knew that they would come out on top. And then the world would go through a transformation just like she and her friends had. They would win and they would make a better world for the future.

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**There you go. If you liked it, please leave me a review! If you didn't, well, tell me that too!**


	24. Order

**Hey y'all. I'm so so so sorry. I'm horrible, I know, I've just been feeling like crap these past few days and I have had the worst headache since pretty much Friday. But enough excuses. I am going to do my damnedest to get the rest of these up here when they should be!**

**Also, thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorite-ed, or followed this! When I get the notification in my email I seriously smile like a fool for at least an hour!**

**I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Well, I'm still not JK Rowling, but it would be silly to stop putting these disclaimers up now, yeah?**

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****_Order_

Tonks contemplated her reflection in the mirror over the sink in her bathroom. Her hair was still chin-length and blonde, the style she had chosen for work that day to seem less conspicuous while undercover. She scrunched her nose up and concentrated. When she opened her eyes again she smiled, pleased with her work. Her hair was bright blue and her eyes were the color of an amethyst. She threw her maroon-colored Auror robes onto her bed and changed into a pair of jeans and a Holyhead Harpies tee shirt.

She was full of excitement and anticipation and nerves. Tonks was only 22 years old and she was already a fairly successful Auror. And she was about to risk all of that because tonight was the first meeting.

She didn't know where the meeting would be held, only that it would be in the vicinity of Grimmauld Place in London. That was what the note from Mad-Eye had said anyway. She would be meeting Kingsley there and he would give her further directions.

She pulled on her black leather jacket and laced up her boots and locked the door behind her.

She was almost afraid to Apparate because she was so giddy and nervous. But she succeeded in appearing in the small square across from the dirty-looking line of houses. She noticed that there was no number 12, the houses skipped from 11 to 13, but there was nothing even remotely remarkable about the place. She thought for a moment she had gotten the destination wrong but then she heard the _crack _of Apparition off to her left and found her fellow Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt straightening his robes.

This was it. Kingsley would give her her final instructions and then she would go to the meeting, become a member, and do what the Ministry was too afraid to do- fight Voldemort.

"Wotcher Kingsley." Tonks sidled up beside him and smiled as he reached into his robes.

"Tonks." He greeted her with a smile and a nod. "Here," he said in his booming voice, "read this and then burn it."

Yeah, because that's not weird at all, Tonks thought. Still, she could feel the butterflies in her stomach multiply tenfold as she unfolded the small strip of paper and read: _The headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve Grimmauld Place, London._

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**There you have it! It's a bit short because I tried including Sirius and Remus and the rest but it just kept going and going and it was far too long for this. Maybe I'll post the rest as something different later?**

**Oh! And reviews are wonderful and I will love you forever if you leave me one!**


	25. Sunset

**Hello everyone! I hope you enjoy!**

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_Sunset_

Hestia sat at the edge of the lake and watched as it seemingly swallowed the setting sun. It was over, they had won. So why did she feel so utterly hopeless?

She had lost so much to these wars, to this man- if you could even call him that. She had never gotten over Marlene's death back during the first war- and how could she, they had grown up like sisters! She had cried for days and refused to leave her room no matter how hard Emmeline tried to coax her out. Of course James and Lily had been a tragedy too- everyone they lost was tragic. And she had known that things weren't over, that Voldemort wasn't actually dead. And this time around- they had lost so many people. It wasn't any less heartbreaking the second time people started dying.

She had lost her best friend. Again.

When she had heard of Emmeline's death Hestia was inconsolable. Emmeline had been her second half, it felt as if a part of her was missing. They had been best friends for almost thirty years and then one day she was just gone.

There seemed to be a hole in her heart that was irreparable. So she had done the only thing that she could do- she had fought. Fought so that her best friends' deaths weren't for nothing, so that James and Lily didn't die in vain, so that Gideon and Fabian and Dorcas and Sirius and everyone else hadn't died unnecessary deaths.

Hestia escorted the Dursleys to safety even after their horrid treatment of Harry. She helped Muggleborns leave the country and find safe houses to keep them safe from Snatchers. She took down as many Death Eaters as she could during the Final Battle only a day ago.

And as she watched Bellatrix die at the hands of Molly Weasley and the Lestranges bound and knocked out by Professor McGonagall and Voldemort fall to the ground, dead, because of his own rebounding curse, Hestia felt the hole in her heart stitch itself up just a little bit. Because they had won. She knew, though, that her heart would never be whole again. She had lost too many people she loved. And even though they had won, Remus and Tonks had died. Fred Weasley had died. Children who weren't even of age but had stayed behind to fight for what they believed in had died.

So after the feast had ended and people had started to gather in small groups to discuss arrangements Hestia had fled the castle and sat down on the bank of the Black Lake.

It wasn't black at the moment though. It looked like a watercolor painting of reds and oranges and pinks. The sunset was reflected on the surface of the choppy water and Hestia sighed as she drew her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them.

She didn't know what the future would hold for any of them, but she could only hope that it would be as beautiful as the colors dancing in the sky before her.

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**There you have it! This is my first go at writing Hestia, so please let me know what you think!**


	26. Simple

**I'm late, I know. I'm sorry! I don't have an excuse, but I have a drabble/one-shot/whatever-you-want-to-call-it for you!**

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****_Simple_

Neville Longbottom had never been what you would call 'popular'. He was awkward and quiet and terribly unsure of himself. He didn't like to volunteer in class because he didn't want to give the Slytherins- and some Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs on occasion- anymore reason to laugh at him.

He was pretty sure that his lack of self-assurance came from being raised by his grandmother. She was a very intimidating woman, not to mention her stellar skills when it came to magic. And the fact that his parents were still in St. Mungo's didn't help much either. Seeing them in that state every week after hearing about what brilliant Aurors they were scared Neville very much. Maybe that was why he didn't show any indication of being a wizard until later on in his childhood- everything he knew of magic was scary and intimidating and frankly he wasn't sure if he wanted to be magic.

But he was and he went to Hogwarts and just did his best to keep his head down. He mostly kept to himself and his favorite hours of the day were the ones spent out in the greenhouses during Herbology. He supposed he was friends with the boys in his dorm, though he had the feeling that they saw him as a joke sometimes too. But he didn't mind- they were nice and _he _thought he was kind of a joke too, sometimes.

So, for four years, Neville kept his head down and tried to blend in with the crowd. He didn't tell anyone about his parents or their condition- that would only draw attention to him. He did his work the best he could and tried to live a normal life at Hogwarts- however normal that was.

Then the time had come to decide. The time to decide which side he was on. And, like his parents, Neville chose to fight for good. Maybe he still didn't tell people about his mum and dad- and he didn't much like when they found out after Bellatrix Lestrange's escape- but he was determined to make them proud. And to make his gran proud too.

In his mind, the choice to fight was simple. It was the right thing to do and Neville always tried to do the right thing. He practiced and practiced his spellwork and he listened intently as Harry talked about dueling and Death Eaters and Voldemort and he got to the point where the only person mastering spells faster was Hermione.

And in making that simple decision, Neville found where he fit in. He was still awkward and quiet and kind of unsure of himself, but that didn't matter. He found the people that appreciated him and encouraged him. And he loved that feeling almost as much as he loved the one he got knowing that they were doing something. That they would be ready.

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**There you go! Neville is one of my favorites and I love how he went from such a scared little boy to such a brave man. **

**Please review! XOXO**


	27. Prepared

__**Firstly, thank you to everyone who reviewed Neville :) Secondly, thank you to everyone who has reviewed this at all! You are all wonderful and I love you. Thirdly, I'm gonna shut up now and get on with it :)**

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_Prepared_

Bill Weasley was pretty fearless. He was the oldest of seven and that in and of itself could be scary sometimes. He had become a curse-breaker not long after finishing Hogwarts and spent his days disarming ancient jinxes and curses, which was a very serious business. He had survived an attack by the nastiest werewolf most people had ever heard of. And then he had survived the Battle of Hogwarts where he fought crazy, blood-thirsty Death Eaters.

So when Fleur announced that she was pregnant, Bill had been ecstatic- after all, what was a baby compared to all the dangerous things he had done in his life. It would be a piece of cake.

Except the baby was a girl. And so was their second baby. Bill often thanked Merlin that the third one was a boy. Because girls, they were hard.

Growing up, Bill hadn't really known Ginny as anything more than another baby. By the time she had actually grown into a real person, he had been long gone and only seeing his family once every few years. He had missed the hormonal rages and the crying over boys and the screaming when Molly had tried to brush the snarls out of Ginny's hair.

So when Victoire started screaming when her father tried to brush her hair and stomping her foot when he didn't do exactly what she wanted and crying over boys, Bill was totally lost. The older Victoire got the less it seemed she wanted anything to do with her father, whom she would often call clueless and unfair.

And then Dominique started doing the same things, and Bill still had trouble dealing with the tears and the attitude. And that was after already going through it with Victoire. Thank Merlin he had Fleur because without her Bill didn't know how he would have coped.

What he had been least prepared for, though, was how quickly he became wrapped around Victoire's messy little finger, and then Dominique's too. Because after they were born, he was no longer just a fearless curse-breaker. He was a dragon guarding the princesses' tower from their evil baby brother. He was a guest at a tea party with about ten teddies. He was a reader of fairy tales and the monster-under-the-bed slayer. And on occasion, he was a unicorn for the girls to ride around the house.

And after his girls were grown and no longer wanted to play princesses or have tea parties, Bill found that he missed it terribly.

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**There ya go :) Hope you like it. (If so, you could always leave a review. If you want. No biggie.)**


	28. Thousand

**Hey guys. We are nearing the end! And quite frankly, these last few have been giving me a hard time. I honestly have no clue what I'm gonna write for tomorrow's. But, it's still today and here's today's! Thank you for reading/reviewing/favoriting/following/whatevering this! You guys are awesome!**

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****_Thousand_

Albus Potter took a deep breath and shook himself, trying to rid his stomach of whatever was flip-flopping around inside. He could hear the cheers and the shouts and the stomping of the people in the stands outside. His heart was hammering in his chest and he could hear his blood pumping. And he was sweating a little, too. He couldn't ever remember being so nervous.

He was 18 years old and he was about to play his first professional game for the Caerphilly Catapults.

The captain called the team to the doorway and Al had to concentrate quite hard on not vomiting. He didn't hear what his teammates were saying around him- his hearing had gone sort of wonky. All he could hear now was the sound of his blood pounding in his head. Well, that and the sound of the fans cheering beyond the doors.

He was the youngest on his team- the youngest in the league that year too, as a matter of fact- so his teammates were looking much more confident than he felt and he noticed that as they made their way out onto the pitch, they walked with much more swagger than he did. He thought he was about to go deaf as the doors opened and the sound from the stadium magnified.

Sitting in the stands, waving flags and yelling the name of their favorite players, were at least a thousand people waiting for him to either win the match or fumble enough for the other team to win. Al could definitely feel the pressure mounting. He knew his whole family was out there- his dad had made sure that they had all gotten the day off of work and his mum had made sure they got their own private box to watch his first game.

Al's stomach started churning even more at the thought of his parents sitting up there, of his brother and sister and the rest of their crazy family, all counting on him to pull of a spectacular win.

As soon as he mounted his broom and soared into the air, high above the pitch, it seemed that the noise and the nerves just disappeared. Al caught sight of his dad as he flew past the box containing his family and the confident smile on his face seemed to light a fire in Al's stomach.

Two hours later, when Al was hoisted onto the shoulders of one of the Beaters, all the noise and all the people came back into focus and he raised up the hand that held the tiny, fluttering Snitch in triumph. He saw the reporters crowding around the exits to the pitch, the fans waving their green and red flags, the Wasps walking dejectedly into the guest lockers. And then his mum was waving her press badge in the faces of the security guards and she and his dad were pushing their way to the front of the pack waiting for him to reach them.

As the crowd cheered and his teammates whooped in joy, Al couldn't keep the huge grin from his face and he realized how awesome his job was.

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**Please review!**


	29. Flames

**Hey all. Not sure about this one- I wrote it a few times and this is the one that I like the most. So here you go!**

**Also, thank you to those who have reviewed :)**

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****_Flames_

Scorpius Malfoy was a good student. He was second in his class. He was a Chaser for the Slytherin team by his third year. He followed the rules, even though he was friends with two of the most troublesome students in their year. And in classes, he was almost always one of the first to get spells right.

Except those damn flames. When Scorpius had seen Rose create the tiny bluebell flame out in the courtyard that first time, he couldn't wait for Professor Flitwick to teach the rest of them how to do it. There was just something about the color and the way the flame flickered but never went out. It was really quite spectacular.

So, when Professor Flitwick had announced that they would be learning how to conjure portable flames, eleven-year-old Scorpius had sat at full attention and copied down Flitwick's every word. Rose was obviously the first to produce the flames as her mother had taught her before she had even come to school. Scorpius expected to be the next to produce the glowing blue flames but as the class period wore on and all around him his classmates produced their own personal fires, Scorpius grew agitated. Even Al had managed to produce the flames and he was horrible at Charms!

Class ended and Scorpius still couldn't manage to produce the flames. Al had shrugged and told him he would get it eventually and Rose had smiled at him in a way that Scorpius supposed was meant to be comforting.

Scorpius left Hogwarts at age seventeen long since having learned to conjure the silly blue flames. But he could never get them to glow as bright or flicker in the same eerie way as they did when Rose conjured the them- he liked the flames better when she made them.

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**There you go! Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think!**

**One more left- the end is near! Can you guess who the last one will be about?**


	30. Future

**Hey guys! This is it! Even though life kind of got in the way in the middle there, I have reached the end! **

**I want to say thank you to every single person who read any part of this and I want to say a very big thank you to those who reviewed/favorited/followed this! I really enjoyed writing these, though some of them were definitely difficult.**

**So basically what I'm saying here is THANK YOU!**

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**_Future_******

**Thoughts of the future had always been in the back of Harry's mind. Visions of miniature Ginnys running around or laughing with Ron and Hermione when they were old, sitting in rocking chairs on the front porch. A job in the Auror department, protecting the people of wizarding Britain. And of course, in the future he pictured, Voldemort was nothing more than a memory. But those were just fantasies of a normal life that he very often doubted he would ever get the chance to actually have.******

**But when the time came and Tom Riddle died his very human death, Harry's mind was buzzing with the possibilities now open to him. He could be whoever he wanted to be, there was no prophecy determining his fate. He got to choose his fate now.******

**So as he made his way down the very desolate stairs and to the Great Hall after a nice, long sleep, images of a cottage in the country with tiny children running around the backyard floated through his mind. He could see himself with his arm around Ginny, both of them waving as the Hogwarts Express carried their son or daughter off to Hogwarts for the first time. He pictured the two of them doing married couple things with Ron and Hermione- because let's face it, if they don't end up together what kind of future would that even be?******

**When he entered the Great Hall and everyone went instantly quiet and he wanted to flee to the comfort and invisibility of his bed up in Gryffindor tower, it was the sight of Ginny running toward him, the feel of her arms wrapped around his neck, the smiles on Ron's and Hermione's faces, the way that Mrs. Weasley told him how peaky he looked through her tears for Fred that filled his mind and the future was completely forgotten.******

**He wanted to be in this moment, now. Because really, he had the rest of his life to think about the future, and he planned to make it a great one.**

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**Well, there you go! That's it- the end! Please let me know what you think and thanks again to everyone!**


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